UPenn Specialized Studies Program?

[crg001]

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Hi everyone! I recently got admitted into UPenn's Specialized Studies Program! I was wondering if anyone has done this program and can talk about their experience in it? What were classes like? What were the averages in classes? Did the post bacc help you when it came to med school admissions? I did see another thread on this, but it was from early 2000s so I wanted to see any new updates. Any info is much appreciated! Thank you! 🙂

 

[phenomenology]

I was admitted as a pre-vet 2 years ago and considered it heavily since Penn was where I ultimately wanted to go to vet school (and I am ending up there this fall, yay!), but I decided against it because the program has classes later in the day, the cohort is comprised of only postbaccs and there's only 1 choice for instructor/professor per class (I'd double check on if any of this has changed since it's been 2 years). I went with Columbia's postbacc, which you can PM me about if you're considering them too. And while its style isn't for everyone, it really worked for me, and I liked having the flexibility to choose from the entire undergrad class catalog (multiple class times, multiple professors). They also have a pretty robust linkage program for med school.

 

[gamjatang]

Hi there! Congratulations on your acceptance! I'm a current Penn Pre-Health Post-Baccalaureate student on the Specialized Studies track. I just matriculated this Spring and can't really speak on how this program affects admissions outcomes, but I figured that with the lack of updated feedback available on this forum, my experiences so far might be helpful for you. Full disclosure, I applied to this program and this program only because I'm employed at Penn full-time as a clinical research coordinator and wanted to take advantage of the tuition benefit.

The pros:​

• The Specialized track grants me the flexibility to choose evening classes that don't interfere with my work schedule.
• There's a solid mix of upper-division science and pre-requisites available (Microbiology, Cell Biology, Genetics, anatomy classes through the Perelman School of Medicine, etc.) The classes I have taken so far have been reasonable in their level of difficulty/amount of assigned work.
• Philadelphia is a great place to live. I will forever and always be a Philly defender since I grew up near the city, so I may be biased! Nevertheless, it's pretty walkable and has a robust public transport system (not always clean or on time but it gets the job done), a thriving food and art scene, and a plethora of research, clinical, and service opportunities.
• The advising team is small, and you will form a solid relationship with your advisors and professors throughout your time in the program if you put in the time and effort to get to know them.

The cons:​

• This program is very hands-off. Students are expected to be proactive about fulfilling program requirements and staying on top of their classes. If you want an advisor meeting, you have to reach out first. If you need assistance, you have to be the one to seek it out. Your time here is very much what you make of it: you can be very involved and consistently in contact with the advising team, or you can do the bare minimum. If you're in the latter group, no one will check in to make sure you're on the right track.
• Few linkages, and even less for Specialized studies students. If you're looking for admission via linkage, your options are PCOM or Rutgers.
• There are some clubs and associations for LPS students, but many of them aren't very active or don't do much throughout the semester.
• We are not a close-knit cohort. If you are looking to forge long-lasting friendships in your post-bacc, this program is not for you. We are all so busy that it's hard to find time outside of work to socialize, and the chances to meet other students that aren't in your classes are few and far between.

Overall, I've been able to balance working a 9-5, a second part-time job, and volunteering with my classes and extracurriculars in the program, albeit with not a lot of free time left over! I definitely don't regret doing the program because the tuition coverage was too good to pass up, but if I had the financial freedom to look elsewhere, there are definitely better post-bacc programs out there. Please feel free to PM me if you have any additional questions or concerns! Good luck and take care!